The present invention relates to transducer architectures and ultrasound systems. In particular, electronics are positioned in an ultrasound transducer probe assembly.
Medical diagnostic ultrasound systems typically have detachable ultrasound probe assemblies. A transducer array is housed in a hand-held probe. The hand-held probe is connected through a cable to a connector housing. The connector housing electrically and mechanically releasably connects to an ultrasound system. The user can select different ultrasound probes for different examinations and connect the selected probe to the ultrasound imaging system. Using beamformers and other circuitry in the ultrasound imaging system, an image is generated through the transmission and reception of acoustic energy by the connected transducer probe.
Electronics associated with the imaging system have been placed in the ultrasound probe housing. For example, time delays and summers are positioned in a transducer probe to perform partial beamforming from a multidimensional array. The partially beamformed signals (i.e., signals from each beamformed sub-array) are output to the ultrasound imaging system for beamforming. As another example, U.S. Pat. No. 5,590,658 discloses a hand-held probe housing in which the ultrasonic transducers and beam forming circuitry are housed. As another example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,875,178(U.S. application Ser. No. 10/184,461), the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference, discloses integrating a multiplexer and other electronics in the hand-held ultrasound transducer probe housing. Signals from a plurality of transducer elements are time division multiplexed onto a few number of cables for transmission to the ultrasound imaging system. In another ultrasound transducer probe assembly, a controller for a wobbler transducer is positioned in the connector housing for controlling the motor of the wobbler array in the probe housing. As yet another example, switches for selecting an aperture on a 1.5 D array or passive tuning inductors are positioned within a connector housing of a transducer assembly.